Fashion Keeps Trying To Make Trash Bags Happen

Fashion, Once Again, Tries To Make Trash Bags Chic

Christopher Kane has the Midas touch. Where he goes, fashion follows. And for his fall/winter 2016 collection, things were no different. The clothes sent down the runway were the perfect The Secret Garden-meets-Twin Peaks-meets-Grey Gardens blend (a trio that works surprisingly well together); they were eccentric and genteel, and inspired by an unlikely muse: hoarders (which just might explain the trash bag-like babushkas tied around most of the models' heads).

The first piece — a rather sculptural camel coat — belied the rest of the show’s quirky offerings. It was a collection filled with textures — sheepskins, furs, feathers, silks, plastics — and colors aplenty. Painted roses reminiscent of Alma-Tadema's "The Roses of Heliogabalus" were printed onto sleeveless, floor-sweeping gowns worn with pointed brogues or feathered heels; large, army-green tweed coats and gray shearlings were styled to appear both practical and decadent; lace peeked out from underneath brusquely painted, ragged silk dresses in primary shades, creating moments of unexpected sexiness.

Then, there were certain items and decorations that popped up everywhere: Leather came in the form of trousers, gloves, tote bags, and dresses in nude and black; floral corsages and maypole-style ribbons were messily arranged over a variety of frocks and tops; and most models wore seemingly waterproof headscarves (resembling plastic bags). Though this isn't the first time fashion has tried "trash couture" (see: Kane's own spring 2014 show, as well as Lanvin's), we do appreciate its more practical use (read: not as a piece of ready-to-wear, but more as a wearable umbrella). Somehow, Kane always manages to comfortably straddle commercialism and artistic credibility, and this collection works (even if those garbage-bag head protectors don't).